CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY (PIA)--The future awaits the 528 student beneficiaries of Cagayan de Oro as the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)-10 offers the Special Program for the Employment of Students (SPES), where working students will render services within the span of 20–75 days and be paid with the existing minimum wage of the city with a 40% DOLE-10 counterpart.

A budget amounting to P2,566,826.40 is allocated for the program.

To guarantee a smooth implementation of SPES, an orientation was conducted, March 3, 2023, by the DOLE-10 Cagayan de Oro City Field Office steered by Provincial Director Emmanuel G. Toledo, at the Deluxe Hotel, this city.

For the calendar year 2023, SPES implementation is about to commence for the DOLE-10 Cagayan de Oro City Field Office and its partner implementers, namely Lourdes College Inc., PHINMA-Cagayan de Oro City College, Golden Arches Development Inc. (McDonald's), and the Local Government Unit of Cagayan de Oro City. Representatives were April Rose Selim, Xyrah Magallanes, Tania Jannah May Salvan, and Robille Dailo, respectively.

Partner implementers were given a refresher on the salient features of SPES and its reportorial requirements by Labor and Employment Officer III Mhardy Mae V. Caling and SPES Regional Coordinator Cindy Lyn B. Antesco.

They will not only be able to make money and pay for school, but they will also learn skills that will last a lifetime and, most importantly, help them make the transition from school to work.

With optimism in mind, Chief Toledo looks forward to the future that awaits these 528 young minds and the convergence that will take place between the DOLE-10 CDO Field Office, the Job Placement Bureau-Public Employment Service Office, and the partner implementers in giving these deserving individuals a chance to forge their dreams and eventually the key to the future that lies ahead of them. (DOLE-10/PIA-10)